Apparatus for treating mixtures of liquids and solids.



A. E. VANDERCOOK.

'APPARATUS FOR TREAYING MIXTURES 0F LIQUIDS AND SOLIDS.

APPLICATION HLED MAR.9,1914.

1,135,981). Patented Apr. 13, 1915.

/if ATTORNEYS.

ALBERT E. I NDERCGOK, GF ALMEB., CLEFGRNEA, ASSIGNOR TG CALIFORNIA MACVAN 30,0? SAN lFRAN CISCO, CALIFORN, fr. CORPORATION 0F CALIFORNIA.

APPASILTUS FR @HEATING ML'TBES OF LIQUIDS AND SOLIDS. I,

arenoso,

specification' of Letters raient.' Patented Apr. 13', 1915.

Application filed March 9, 191e. Serial No. 823,597.

T0 all whom it may conce/m:

Be it-inioivn that l, ALBERT E. VANDER- cooir, a citizen olf the United Sta-tes, and a resident of the city ot Alameda, countyo Alameda. and State ot' California, have 1nvented certain new and usel'ul Improvements in Apparatus for Treat-ing Mixtures of Liquids and Solids.

The invention relates to an apparatus for treating mixtures .of liquids and solids or semi-solids such as are encountered in metallurgical and manufacturing operations. The apparatus is particularly useful in treating ore pulps and shmes in metallurgical operations, and l will so describe 1t herein. liiit it is to he understood that the 1ni'eiition is not limited to metallurgical operations, but may he employed in otherand manufacturing processes in which. slimfss, pulps or similar mixtures of solids and liquids are encountered,

"lf he objects of the invention are many and diversified and l shall attempt only to state hrieiiv a eiv ot' these objects.

(lue ot' the objects ot the invention is to provide an apparatus for filtering or separating the liquid content ot' a mixture ol the nature of a pulp or slime from the solid or semisolid content without torming a cake ot the unlilterable material.

AnotherolijeCt ot' the invention is to provide a liltering apparatus in which the filtering medium continually swept oy a plaurality of streams ot the material. to be liltei-ed.

rl`he invention iossesses other objects and advantageous features, which, vvith the foregoing, will lie set forth at length in the ollouing description, where l shall out-l line in i'ull onevtforrn of the apparatus ot my invention,ufliich l have selected for illustration in the drawings accompanying and forming part. ot the presentspecilication. The novelty ot the invention will be included inthe claims -succeedingy said de scriptum, and in View of the fact that this invention is `basic in nature, l desire the vclaims to he construed in their broadest From this it is to lie understood that l do not limit myself to the showing made hy said drawings and description, as .l may adopt many variations in the apparatus within the scope of' my invention 'as set torth in said claims. i

ln view of the departure from accepted practice in the present invention, and of the vast importance of the results obtained thereby, it is deemed necessary to a full disclosure and a proper understanding of the signiicance of the apparatus hereinafter described to premisethe description of the apparatus by clearly indicating the nature of the problems involved. v

As I have stated hereinloefore'l thisinvention is applicable to metallurgicaand other processes, but since I am more familiar with metallurgical processes than with the other processes, l will describe it in such connection, but the tact that I describe the invention in connection with metallurgical operations is not to be considered as limiting the use thereof to such processes, since I can conceive otits use in many other processes. ln. the metallurgical field it is particularly advantageous in connection With the cyanid process, for separating the value bearing cyanid solution from the ore pulp or slimes, but may be used in any process in which liquids and solids or semisolids in the nature of pulps or slimesare to be separated, either to obtain the solids or semisolids or the f liquid. ln the vcyanid process, the ground or pulverized ore or pulp containing the gold, silver and other values is mixed `with a cyanid solution which dissolves the gold, silver and other values and then the value bearing solution is separated from the remaining solid and semisolid material, so that the solution may be subjected to further treatmentlfor the recovery of the values therefrom. The cyanid bearing pulp or slimes, and by this l mean the mixture ofthe finely ground or pulverized cre With the cyanid solution, has heretofore been agitated or stirred or mixed in one vessel for a sufficient length of time,-: depending upon the .characteristics of the ore, to accomplish the solution of the values. From this vessel the mass of pulp or slime has been conveyed directly or indirectly Vto another vessel or container which constitutes a filter, and in Whichthe solid or insoluble material is deposited on filtering surfaces and from which the value bearing cyanid solution has been withdrawn for subsequent treatment. In the filtering process as heretotore practically accomplishednin the liltration ot slimes the unlteralole materialis deposited on the filtering' medium in the form ot a cake, which builds up on the tiltering surface.' The liquid is .forced through i the filteiing medium andthe cake by means of a difference in pressure on opposite sides of the filtering medium, and this operation may be accomplished in two ways, that is, either by forcing the liquid through or by drawing or sucking it through. These two methods of operation have produced suction filters and pressure filters, but in so far as thel general filtering operation is concerned, the two types of filters operate to filter in the sa me manner, that is, by forming a cake of the unfilterable material on the filtering surface. lt is evident that the formation of the .cake increases the resistance tovfiltration and reduces the rate at which the liquid may be withdrawn, without producthe cake is builtV up uniformly. Since the' presence of the cake greatly reduces the rapidity o ffiltration, itis evident that the efficiency of cake forming filters must necessarily be very low and since all practical slime filters are cake forming filters, it follows that the method of filtering now in use is capable of vast improvement. This improvement I- have made by providing a filter in which no cake is formed. Further than this, after the cake has been formed, it must be removed from the filtering medium, after it has been washed, and the proper removal of the cake necessitates generally, the use el a large amount of water, which in regions where water is scarce, is a large item of expense. By my process, since no cake is fcrmefl. it is evident that the employment of a huge amount of sluicing water is not necessary, thereby providing another feature et' advantage over the filters now in general llfC.

flaring stated the present status of the filtering art. prior to my invention, it is beli red to be advisable to set forth some of the lisclcsures of the present invention.

This inventionv discloses forthe first time a practical apparatus for filtering ore pulp ,or slimes or similar masses in .which the for'- i'uatioa of a cake is obviated and also discloses for the first time a filtering apparatus inv which the unfilterable material is not deposited upon the filtering medium during the filtering operation.

According to my invention I prevent the foi mation of'a cake on the filtering medium, by continually directing .a plurality of streams of the nnitcrial to be filtered against the filteringmcdium. The nozzlcsfrom which tliesestreamsissue are preferably movable' over the filtering mediumso that the moving streams sweep the entire surface of the fil tering medium and remove any deposit therefrom as soon asit is deposited. The material which constitutes the streams whichare forcibly directed against the filtering mediumiswithdrawn from the mass of material ,to be filtered in the filterpleted. In cake forming filters the cake contains between 30% and 50% of moisture, but by maintaining the material in the form of a pulp,-tl'1e moisture content may be reduced as lowvor lower than when a cake is formed. In the cake formingv filter there is a certain thickness of cake beyond which it is notpossible to filter, but in the present process it is possible to filter when 'a much deeper body of the thick unfilterable material is present, thereby. rendering the discharge of the unfilterable material less frequent.

The process andthe apparatus are particularlyidesigned to be used in connection with ore pulos or slimes which consist of a mixture of nnely pulverized ore and liquid, and in the following description and claims I shall refer to the material to be filtered as pulp, it being understoodv that the word pulp includes slimes Aand covers any material which when filtered without agitation i will form a' cake on the filtering medium.

In the accompanying drawings I have outlined a simple form of the apparatus of my invention, but it is to be understood that the apparatus is capable of many variations and modifications, and that the invention is not limited to the apparatus shown. f

ln said drawings: Figure 1 is an elevation of one form of thc complete apparatus, the filtering vessel being shown. in section. Fig. 2 is a section of a fragment of the filtering surface. Fig. 3 lis a' vertical section of a modifiedconstruction of the ,bottom of the filtering vessel.

lhe apparatus illust-rated comprises a cylindrical tank 2 into'which the pulp or Aranged a sealed tank 8, into which the filspaced and upright. Arranged on the top, of the bars is a layer of wire netting 85.,

Overlying the edges of the bars and the netting is a circular angle iron 36, the vertical leg of which lies adjacent or in contact with the verticalleg of angle iron Overlying the wire netting and the angle iron 36 and projecting beyond the angle ironBG is a circularsheet ot' burlap 327,A upon which is superposed a sheet of canvas or other material 38.-'Tlie joint between the canvas and the side of the tank 2 may be sealed by calkiiig With rope 39 or other fiber. It is to. be" 1inderstood that this, describes one way in which the filtering medium may be constructed, and that I do not limit myselfto such construction as others may readily sugfilterable material discharge is shown in metallurgical operations' olE a mixture ot" Fig. 3, in which the surface of the filtering -medinni is annular in'sliape and' slopes t.;-

waid `a central discharge opening which is controlled by a gate 44.

`-When` the tank is charged with pulp or slimes, and the canvas is new, some of the liquid may pei-col ate through the canvas and this liquid otten passes through in a muddy condition. muddy liquid `into the solution tank S, and for that reason a branch pipe 45 provided with'a Valve alti is arranged ou the discharge pipe 7, and a valve -l' arranged `below the branch, so that the initial flow of liquid may be diverted and returned to the, tank Q. As soon as the canvas becomes thoroughly nct ted the. liquid passes through clearand. is

' directed to the tank e.

ln treating some slinies, particularly those of ay colloidal or gelatiiious nature, a siiall amount ot' the slinies iuay become embedded in the pores ol" the canvas and retard liltration to some extent. When such a condition is' noted,l thel valve -l may be closed and air or water under pressure introduced into the discharge pipev T, as for instaure, through the conductor `li. This causes a return or backward passage ot the air or water through the canvas, releasing the material in the pores, which is then swept away by the moving jets. fectly clear and the lilteriug operation may be continued.

'lhe operation et' the apparatus is as :tollows; 'the pulp, consisting generally in ground or pulverized orev and water or It is not desirable to fiow; this The, canvas is again per solution, usually cyanid solution in the naing it clean.l T his recirculation of the pulp and the agitation prodiiced thereby brings vthe ore particles into' recurrent intimatecontact with the cyanid solution and accomplishes `a rapid solution of the values, which is more eflicient since all ot the particles of -tlie pulp and particularly the larger and' heavier particles are held in suspension. During this operation, the air cock 31 may or may, not be opened, depending upon whether or not it is advisable to aerate the pulp. After the solution ot' the values in the cyanid solution vhas been accomplished to a suitable or'pro'per extent, the valve 39' between the solution tank S and the solution outlet ot' the tank 2 is opened and a loivering of pressure produced below the filtering medium. may be produced 'by previously exhausting the, tank S oi' by starting the air pump 5, and the liquid content ot' the pulp is 'forced through the filtering medium and conducted .to -the tank S. During the filtering operation the pump 2l iscontinuouslyr operated and the jets ot pulp discharging from the nozzles 19 against the filtering surface, keep said surtace clean and prevent the formation ot' a cake thereon, regardless of the fact that tlietilterable material is passing through the. filtering medium. By thus inanitaini'ng f the filtering medium clean, I

ture of a slime, is charged into the tank 2,'

This lowering et' pressure 19er i find that the iiltei'ahle .material or liquid,'

passes through the medium with fair rapidity due to the weight ot' the pulp in the tank. even when' there is little or no reduction ot pressure. below the medium. At the beginning of the filtering operation, the recirculating pulp is withdrawn from the tank Q through the pipe "2") and as the level thereof lowers. it is withdrawn through the successively lower pipes, uiitil the desired filtration has-been accomplished. The pulp may be aerated during thefiltering opera- 'lion by opening the Yairl cock 3l and although the air is projected from the nozzles with the pulp, against the filtering surface,

no air drawn through the filtering ine. idiuiu. lhefrltering operation maybe carried on in severalways. yThe tank may be incenso Vcharged with pulp and the filtering operationy carried on until the desired amount of .lil'terable material has been removed,

leaving the unlterahle material contained inthe charge, or pulp maybe continuously orv` intermittently added to the tank during the filtering operation. The present apparatus is capable of operating with a muoh'deeperlayer of unlilterable material than cake forming Vilters and for this reasonit yis possibleto addrpulp to thev tank as the liltering operation is carried on, so that after 4the filtering operation is completed, a deep :mass of unlilterable material is' present. When the filteringoperation is completed, the unlilte'rable material still con tains some liquid, which is usually the valuable element, and it isV` desirable to recover this'valuable liquid. is accomplished by ,introducing Wash water into the tank through thel pipe 28, the pump, and the Ynozzles 19,.and'this -Wa-sh Water is intimately mixed with the pulpy unlilterable material and weakens the strength of the solution remaining therein, so-that after the Weak solution .has 'been Withdrawn, a Very small percentage ofthe values remain. in the un lterable material. After this operation is completed, the uniilterable material still remains in theV consistency of a pulp, and may be readily flowed or sluiced fromthe ta'nlr. This may-be done by opening the discharge outlet .and sluicing thepulpy mass out by means of a lstream of Water or by'discharginc* sluicing Water through the nozzles. Ater the unfilterable material has been removed or discharged, it is advantageous to pass Water or air or both in reverse direction through the vcanvas to remore therefrom any material Which may have become embedded in the pores thereof, before the tank is again charged'with pulp or slime.

ln carrying out the process, it is evident that the filtering medium must be 'submerged in or covered by the material to be filtered, which, for convenience, l have Adesignated'pulp. By the term submerged I mean that the liltering medium is covered by the pulp, ,which is usually accomplished by charging the pulp into the tanlr 'in which the filtering medium is arranged.

l claim:

l. A filter comprising a vessel, a filtering medium arranged in said vessel, means for forcing the liquid being iiltered through said medium and means vfor circulating the 'unfiltered material and projecting it directly against the surface of the iiltering mediumE 2. A filter comprising a vessel, a :filtering mediame-y arranged in said vessel, means for forcing the liquid being filtered through said medium and rotatableineans for simul taneously directing a plurality or streams of liquid directly against the surface of said medium.

3. A filter comprising a vessel, a liltering medium arranged in said lvessel, a hollow armed rotatable structure yarranged adjacent the surface of said medium provided With discharge apertures, and means for forcing liquid through said arms and apertures and directly against the surface o said medium. c

ll. A filter comprising a vessel adapted 4to contain a quantity of pulp, a filtering medium arranged in said vessel below the level ot' the pulp, means for forcing the liquid being liltered through said medium, and rotatable means arrangedin vclose relation to the surface of saidA medium adapted to project a plu ality of streams of pulp directly against the surface or' said medium.

5. A iltercomprising a vessel, a filtering medium arranged in said vessel, a hollow armed rotatable structure arranged in close relation to the surface of said medium, a plurality of nozzles on said structure directed toward-'said surface, and means for lorciblyj discharging liquid through said nozales.,

6.' A lter comprising a vesseha filtering medium arranged in said vessel, a liquid supply pipe vertically arranged said ressel, a hollow armed rotatable element sus-7 pended by said pipe in said Vessel and disposed in, close relation to said medium, a plurality or nozzles on said element directed toward the surface of said medium, and means for forcing liquid through said nozzles.

7. A i'ilter comprising a vessel, a iltcn medium arranged in said vessel, means forv orcing the liquid being filtered through said medium, a pipe depending into said Vessel, a hollow armed structure mounted on the lower ond of said pipe, a plurality' of nozzles on said structure directed toward the surface oi said medium.r a pump for forcing liquid through said pipe, and a suc tion pipe for said pump connectedto said Vessel. y

8. A filter 'comprising a vessel, a filtering 'medium arranged in said vessel, means for forcing the liquid being filtered through said medium, a lpump arranged externally of said Vessel, a suction pipe for said pump 'connected to saidvessel at a plurality of levels, values between said suction pipe and said connection, a discharge pipe from said pump dependinginto the said vessel, a hollos? armed member rotatably mounted on said depending pipe and in communication therewith, and a plurality of nozzles on said hollow armed member directed toward the surface of said medium.

filter comprising a vessel adapted tocontain pulp, a filtering medium arranged Said medium a Pump arranged extcrnallyw of said vessel, a suction pipe for said pump connected to said vessel, van air cock on said suction pipe, a discharge pipe for said pump depending' into said vessel a hollow armed structure rotatably mounted on said discharge pipe in close relation to the surface of said ltering medium and a.' plurality of nozzles on said structure directed toward the surface ofv the filtering' medium.

l1. A. filter comprising avessel adapted to contain a `quantity lof pulp, a filtering medium arranged in said vessel below the level of the pulp, means submerged in the pulp for discharging a plurality of jets'of liquid directly against the surface of said medium and means for forcing the liquid being filtered through said medium.

12. Avfilter comprising a vessel adapted to contain a quanity of pulp, a filtering inedium arranged in said vessel, a hollow rotatable structure arranged in close relation to said filtering medium, a plurality of fiat nozzles on saidstructureinclined toward V said filtering medium, and means for forci'ng pulp through said nozzles.

13. A filter comprising a vessel adapted to contain a quantity of pulp, a filfering medium arranged in said vessel, means for forcing the liquid being'filtcred through said filtering medium, a hollow armed ro-l for withdrawing a portion of the pulp from said vessel and forcing it through said structure and nozzles.

14. A filter comprising a` vessel, a filterving medium arranged in said vessel, and

rotatable means suspended above said me/l dium for projecting a plurality of streams of liquid directly against said medium.v

15. A filter comprising a vessel, a filtering medium arranged in said vessel, a rotatable structure arranged in said vesselfa plurality of nozzles on said structure inclined toward Ythe surface of said medium and haring their discharg. nds in close relation to said filtering medium, and means v'for forcing liquid through said' nozzles and against the surface of said medium, the reaction of said discharging liquidgcausingv the structure to rotate, whereby the dis charging streams sweep the entire surface of the filtering medium.

16. A- filter comprising a vessel, a filter ing medium arranged in said Vessel, means in said 'vessel for directing a 'plurality of streams of liquid against the surfacel of said medium and means for introducing air into said means.

17. A filter comprising a vessel, a fiatfiltering medium arranged in said vessel, a stationary conductor depending into said vessel, means for withdrawing liquid from the vessel and 'forcing `it through said depending conductor, means adapted to be rotated by .the discharge of liquid therefrom rotatably.vv mounted on said conductor and arranged to discharge the liquid a plurality of streams directly against the surface of said medium, and means for forcing the liquid 'being filtered through said medium.

In Atestimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at San Francisco California, this 4th day of March, 1914.

ALBERT E. VaNnnnoooK'. l

In presence of- H. G. Pnos'r, P. 5. PIDWELL. 

